Why Brazil is the biogas market you don’t want to miss!
Brazil may seem like a hidden gem for biogas to the global community, yet it has been developing its market for over a decade.
The World Biogas Association (WBA) launched our latest country report in April, and the message is clear: Brazil is a significant global player in the biogas sector.
As one of the world’s largest agricultural producers and home to extensive urban waste streams, Brazil has increased its use of readily available feedstock, such as animal manure and slurries, vinasse and municipal solid waste, from meeting only 17% of its short-term biogas production potential in 2020 to 38% in 2023.1
Although less than 2% of its total biogas potential of 84.6 billion Nm3/year is currently being utilised, this remarkable progress demonstrates how Brazil is already capitalising on the low-hanging fruit and indicates the scale of the opportunity that still lies ahead.
What does that mean for you? Untapped feedstock, ample land, and the growing political will to transition to clean energy point to a golden opportunity for investors, developers, and technology providers in the biogas sector.
Key findings regarding the Brazilian market and policy landscape from the report, produced in collaboration with ABiogás and CIBiogás:
- Government alignment with international climate goals includes Brazil’s methane reduction targets, ambitious GHG emission reductions of 59-67% by 2035 compared to 2005 levels, and a commitment to meet the Global Methane Pledge.
- Strong regulatory momentum exists, highlighted by recent policy frameworks that promote bioenergy and circular economy models, such as the National Biofuels Policy (RenovaBio, instituted by Law 13576/2017) and the Fuel of the Future Program (instituted by Law 14993/2024). Furthermore, biomethane production and commercialisation activities are regulated by the National Agency for Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP), and biogas is considered in the 10-year energy plans developed by the Energy Research Office (EPE) of the Brazilian Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME)
- Non-subsidised markets are driven by demand. This demand-side interest has been accelerated by Brazil’s 2024 blending mandate (instituted by Law 14993/2024), which requires producers and importers of natural gas to blend a minimum of 1% biomethane into their supply. Petrobras, one of the major players, plans to buy 700 Nm3/day starting in 2026
- Long-term agreements, public-private partnerships (PPPS), and Build-operate-transfer (BOT) contracts are widely utilised. In addition, some funding and tax reduction mechanisms can benefit new projects and attract international investments
- There are over 1,700 compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling stations and approximately 10 kilometres of high-pressure gas transmission grid, providing an infrastructure base that is ripe for Bio-CNG integration.
- As the world’s largest exporter of soybeans (56% of total exports), corn (31%), coffee (27%), sugar (44%), orange juice (76%), beef (24%), and chicken meat (33%), Brazil also ranks second in sales of ethanol and cotton and is the world’s leading producer and processor of sugarcane. The organic waste resulting from these processes can be transformed into biogas through anaerobic digestion.
Brazil offers not only an economy of scale but also strategic diversity. Coupled with a skilled labour force – backed by high-quality academic and professional institutions providing studies on the biogas value chain – supportive national banks, and access to both Latin American and global export markets, it becomes evident why Brazil is attracting the attention of forward-thinking biogas businesses.
As one of the two large biogas markets that WBA will focus on for phase two of its flagship #MakingBiogasHappen programme, Brazil has been identified as a priority country where real progress can be made. In this next phase, WBA will build on the foundational work completed in phase one – the creation of a Global Biogas Regulatory Framework (GBRF) and the Anaerobic Digestion Certification Scheme International – and collaborate with national and sub-national stakeholders to raise awareness and develop a clear roadmap for action, outlining policy recommendations, investment pathways, and project support mechanisms.
You can access the results of phase one on the links below:
Global Biogas Regulatory Framework (GBRF) https://globalbiogasframework.org/
Anaerobic Digestion Certification Scheme International (ADCS International) https://www.adcsinternational.org/
The full Brazil Country Report is now available to download here: https://www.worldbiogasassociation.org/market-report-brazil/
We invite you to explore the insights, share the findings with your teams and networks, and consider Brazil as a serious destination for your next biogas venture.
Missed the Webinar? Don’t worry. The recording is available here to catch up. https://www.worldbiogasassociation.org/market-report-brazil/
Join us in #MakingBiogasHappen in Brazil. The potential is enormous, and the opportunity is now.